


Purpose, worth, and two girls stuck in the middle.

by Skyinou



Series: Wants, Needs, Help, and a whole lot of trouble. [2]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:42:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28130349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skyinou/pseuds/Skyinou
Summary: Shadow Weaver made sure things go according to plan. Adora is on her way to the Heart of Etheria, but Catra's return will change everything.Shadow Weaver's story until her end.
Series: Wants, Needs, Help, and a whole lot of trouble. [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2056884
Comments: 2
Kudos: 32





	Purpose, worth, and two girls stuck in the middle.

**Author's Note:**

> My take on Shadow Weaver's side of the story during S05E12 et S05E13 of the show. All credit to its creators for the lines of dialog and depiction of a few scenes.  
> No redemption, no good vs evil, no fluff. Just a story about purpose and worth.  
> The fluff will be back in part 3, with a good measure of Catradora's flirting!
> 
> Please do share your thought in the comments!

She’s done it right this time. Everything is in place. Only a few hours. She’s waiting for it, has been, for so long. She’s craving it. She misses it. The magic.

Shadow Weaver is drinking slowly, contemplating what she has accomplished. Her body aches. Not the sharp kind of ache, the insidious, the one that comes from inside. The one you are not supposed to heal from. She has been like that since her failure with the spell of obtainment. It was Micah’s mistake, but she knows she was too eager, too blind to see that he was not ready. She owes him for not realising that early enough. She couldn’t care less about the other sorcerers, but she feels that she robbed him of something greater, a purpose towards the magic, more important than playing king.

She can feel her body slowly decaying. The darkness she absorbed during that incident is slowly gnawing at her. And the magic is eluding her. Everytime she tries to reach for it, she feels the magic slip away. That’s ruining her even more than the physical pain. When she is strong enough to force the use of a spell, the ache grow stronger and stronger, as if grabbing a part of magic makes the magic take a part of herself in exchange.

Shadow Weaver is not weak. Shadow Weaver can not be weak. She’s better than the others, she is the one who will make them free the magic of Etheria. But she knows better than lie to herself. The main reason she is here, instead of out there fighting with the others is because she can’t really, not without risks of ruining her body. She won’t show it, of course, their pity would serve nothing. So she waits, until the magic is released and strong enough for her to feel it again.

And she knows she’s done it right this time. She was patient. She tried her chances with the Black Garnet, forcing it to serve as a bridge between her and the magic. But it didn’t work well. It wasn’t made for that purpose in the first place. First Ones and their tech. The didn’t understand anything. She finds it amusing right now. Someone so closely linked to them is going to undo their work after so long.

Adora. She knew the girl was special the first time she saw her. Even closed off from the magic, she could still sense it, her sorcerer’s instincts were screaming at her. So she took care of Adora, shaping her into her tool, taking her time, until she would be ready. Only interrupted by Adora finding the sword. First Ones and their tech. They hindered her plans again.

Now she’s back in control, she made sure Adora was ready. Is ready. Made sure the distractions were cast away. She can’t help think about Catra. She had to keep close and raise Catra to maintain balance in Adora’s heart. But she made sure to plant weaknesses, doubts, seeds in their minds so she could create a rift between the two girls when needed. Oh she doesn’t comprehend empathy, but she certainly knows how to trick a mind. Even more a young one. And she did has planned. Now Catra was gone, and Adora in her way to sacrifice herself for Etheria’s magic. She’s done it right this time.

Noises. Someone’s coming. She feels tricked as she sees Catra, ironically intruding on her thoughts about having gotten rid of her. The girl is in a panic, calling Adora’s name. Annoyed by her return, Shadow Weaver starts to rub the situation as it is in Catra’s face, that she’s not welcome to go after Adora and- .

Something happens. Something Shadow Weaver was not expecting. Catra is talking back to her, pulling at her robe’s collar. That much, she expected. But there is something in Catra’s eyes. She knows those eyes so well, feral, careful, fearful, always reflecting her survival instinct, and yet right now there is a hint of... determination, resolve.

Against her better judgement, Shadow Weaver likes those eyes. The eyes of someone with a purpose and conviction to see it through whatever the cost. She cannot understand, because there is nothing to gain for Catra anymore, but she is… intrigued. A doubt. Moreover Catra is mentioning something about Prime and the Heart, but that shouldn’t matter as long as Adora is focused. A doubt. Shadow Weaver knows the mind, she knows you can’t brush off a doubt like you brush a peck of dust.

“Show me.”

They don’t go far before Prime makes a holographic appearance. He’s talking like she would. Calmly, gently, with twisted words to serve his purpose. She can’t say she hates it, but their goals are just too different. A doubt. Did she do enough? Catra is trying to convince her to magic to take them to Adora, but the thought of it makes her body shiver. She feels the ache crawling along her spine. That’s not the simple magic she can afford freely. Catra’s eyes, resolved, determined, desperate. A doubt. She unclenches her fist and reaches in her pocket to take out a vial of magic dust. She extends her other hand to invite Catra to come closer while readying herself to cast the spell.

“Come her.”

In a swirl of deep purple smoke, they are transported away to an unfamiliar hallway. Shadow Weaver wavers, falters, leans against the wall in order not to fall on the floor. The pain is extreme. She vaguely sees Catra talking to Glimmer and Bow that happen to be right there. At least she didn’t mess up the spell too much. Last time she used that much magic, she had needed She-Ra to save her. She hopes she didn’t make a mistake. Hope. She doesn’t like the word. She would rather study and plan, but there’s no time.

An ominous tremor shakes the whole place. She tries to inhale deeply. Somehow, she’s grateful for the others to be more chatty than necessary, giving her a few more seconds to catch her breath. She steels herself. Now that she’s her, there is no going back. Soon enough, in flashes of pink magic lights, Catra and her are the only ones left there.

There is only one way to go, since Bow and Glimmer came from one direction and the corridor has no junction. As they arrive to a large room, they find Adora wounded, a wide cut in her side, a giant tech-worm threatening to finish her off. First Ones and their tech in the way again. Shadow Weaver hesitates. Catra doesn’t. She jumps at the monster and lashes at its eyes with her claws.

The sight is awe inspiring, and hopeless. But with Catra acting as a diversion, Shadow Weaver takes Adora and make her way to the Heart of Etheria. They find an access point, a tech-magic seal, glowing, and Adora’s Failsafe lightens in response. Shadow Weaver can feel it, the magic, so close, it brushes against her, flutter in her hair, making her feel life again.

A scream. Catra’s. Adora wavers. Turns back.

A doubt. Shadow Weaver looks at Adora’s back moving away, glances at the seal again, hesitates again. Why? Why now? Why again? Why so close? What did she miss? What more could she have done to set the magic free? She rushes after Adora, her body screaming in pain. For once, Catra’s not to blame, because she was right that they needed to come, so where is her mistake? She passes Adora without noticing, and arrives back to the large room, to find Catra ready to be killed by the worm.

“Was. It. Worth it?”

Words not meant for her, yet they echo through her mind. She freezes. She remembers her studies as a young sorceress, her devotion to magic, her purpose of setting it free from the First Ones tech. She would have done… _would do_ anything, any-.

How could she have forgotten! Her purpose had always been to the magic, she yearned to serve it, that was and would always be the meaning of her life! No price should be too great. Of course it would be worth it.

The doubt shatters. A beam of dark purple strike the worm’s head. Again, and again! The monster recoils. The pain is killing her, but she endures it, she does not falter.

“Take Adora and run!” She hurries Catra, as she fires a few explosion at the beast. Catra is petrified, she doesn’t understand the situation, but there is no time. Black and purple magic manifests to restrain the worm shortly. “I told you to run, now run!” She yells at Catra, magically throwing her away in the hallway leading to the Heart. And she seals it. She knows there is no going back. Her body is crumbling, holding together only by the strength of her will, one last thing to do, one last plan to finish.

She looks at Catra, still in shock. A girl she had raised as nothing more than a pet, a necessary nuisance. And yet here she was, strong enough to make Shadow Weaver realise what she missed, what she needed to do. The monster strikes at her and she shields herself with a bright magic barrier, gaining a bit more time. Now she remembers why she thought Catra looked like her. They were both only surviving, waiting to find a purpose to their lives. One forgotten, one not yet discovered. But if her own was ending, while helping save the magic, Catra’s was only beginning, living for Adora’s sake. Purpose. That she could respect.

“I’m so proud of you, Catra.” She knows Catra will not understand, after how she raised her, but it doesn’t matter. She sees Adora joining Catra. They are both crying for her. She doesn’t care much about the feeling of sadness, but the least she can do is take it as a sign of thanks. She takes her mask off to see them with her eyes unhindered.

“You’re welcome.”

She turns her attention to the worm and drop her mask to the floor. First Ones and their tech, now she has the last laugh. She gathers all the magic she can and let herself be consumed in a whirlwind of fire, taking the beast down with her.


End file.
